My Favorite Things Giveaway!

I could not be MORE excited about this giveaway! I’ve been working on putting this together for you guys for MONTHS. But before I tell you all about this amazing giveaway with over $700 of my very favorite brands, I have even BETTER news…there is more than one giveaway happening this week!

UPDATE! The Giveaway is over, and the winner is…

Congrats, Michelle!

I’m partnering with a whole gaggle of other fabulous bloggers who are also sharing THEIR favorite things in giveaways this week. You can see them all here. So hop on over and enter to win some fantabulous stuff! I know I’ll be entering right along with you.

Let’s dig into my box of goodies, shall we? I really wanted to do something special with this giveaway, and feature some of my very favorite products and brands- things I use, love, and believe in. Let’s start with the small packages…because everyone knows good things come in small packages.

Apothecary Kids Salves

Let’s start with this set of herbal salves (like a balm) from a fairly new, small batch company run by a fellow health minded blogger, Donielle with Apothecary Kids. I reviewed some of their products here, including this set of an herbal healing salve and salve stick. I need to gush just a little more about this stuff. If you’ve never tried salve, you simply MUST. If you every have or every will get burned, scraped, stung, mosquito bitten, or attacked by poison ivy, you simply must try this. Seriously. This is the very first natural product that I ever made (with the same herbs that Donielle uses!) and our family has been totally sold on it ever since. I cannot ever be without it, and as I’ve introduced other friends and family, they’ve all become addicted to it as well. It’s probably one of THE most used and important products in my herbal first aid kit.

Donielle will send the winner of this giveaway a 2 ounce pot of salve, and a large salve stick, which is perfect for your purse! And of COURSE I carry salve in my purse. Doesn’t everybody?

This set is a $14.95 value. Thank you Donielle, and Apothecary Kids!

Fresh As A Daisy Soaps

I’ve been using Fresh As A Daisy‘s soaps and handmade products for over a year now, and I wanted to share them in the giveaway too. Daisy runs a small Etsy store, and creates these handmade soaps, lotions, and lots more.

I LOVE when my packages arrive from Daisy- the whole package smells fantastic, and sometimes I stack the soaps in by my computer so I can sniff them while I work. Her soaps make me feel so pampered- and more than that, they lather up very well, and last.

I really, really love the Rosehip & Meadowfoam soap for my face. It’s gentle and not drying. Her facial moisturizer is a favorite as well. It comes in a small pump bottle, and it’s so light and non-greasy.

Plant Therapy KidSafe Oils

I just got a package from Plant Therapy today in my mailbox! You too can enjoy opening the little bottles and smelling the amazing blends of oils. Plant Therapy meets my three standards for essential oils: potent, pure, and affordable. They are super serious about oil purity and testing.

Another thing I love is that they’ve worked with aromatherapist Robert Tisserand…who literally wrote THE book on essential oils to develop a line of KidSafe oils. Maybe you’ve heard that some very common oils like peppermint and eucalyptus may not be the best idea to use on or around small children. The KidSafe line is an excellent choice for anyone who enjoys diffusing and using oils on or around kids. I bought their KidSafe Sniffle Stopper and Germ Destroyer to keep on hand for the winter season here.

The winner of this giveaway will get an entire set of six KidSafe Winter Wellness blends from Plant Therapy. Because they ROCK! This set is a $57.49 value.

Trim Healthy Mama

No discussion on health and wellness would be complete without mentioning the importance of diet. The Trim Healthy Mama books and products have had such an impact on my own life, weight, and health, and I’m forever grateful! I reviewed their original book over 3 years ago, and recently reviewed their brand new Trim Healthy Mama Plan book. (Pssst…the cookbook is awesome too and my review goes up on Tuesday!)Pearl and Serene (and their publisher, Harmony Books) would love to send the winner of this giveaway a copy of both of the brand new books: Trim Healthy Mama Plan, and the Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook. And you’ll also get a pound of each of their best selling products to try: Gentle Sweet and Baking Blend! Because they’re the sweetest!

This is a $46.96 value.

You might notice that my Mint Chip Milkshake recipe is shared in the new Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook. If you’re going to make a milkshake, wouldn’t it be nice to have a…

Blendtec

Let’s end on a high note: I’m SUPER excited to give away a Blendtec Designer 625 blender. Y’all. This thing is on my short list of appliances that I never want to live without. I reviewed the Designer 625 here, and have enjoyed it immensely! There are SO many features to love about this large appliance trapped in a small appliance’s body.

But you really don’t want to make peanut butter with the big jar. You want this:The Twister Jar is a little engineering marvel that allows super thick foods (like peanut butter!) to continue to spin down into the blades. I can’t remember the last time I’ve bothered to drag out my food processor. I also love this jar for smaller jobs like salad dressings or half-batches of milkshake- and it has a sealing lid that you use for those splashier applications.

And did I mention that the Blendtec blenders don’t have sharp blades? Yes! It amazes me, but the blades are not sharp- it’s the speed that does the work here. So I feel really safe washing my blender and letting my big kids work with it too.

The winner of this giveaway will get both the Blendtec Designer 625 blender AND the Wildside Jar…a $589.90 value. And you’ll fall in love just like I have. Thank you, Blendtec!

Part of the fun of a Giveaway “hop” if you will is meeting new bloggers…here are the blogs I’m linking arms with this week!At Thriving Home, Polly and Rachel strive to encourage moms to thrive in every area of home life. They try to keep it real when it comes to sharing about healthy recipes, raising little people, growing in their faith, freezer cooking and various other topics that motherhood and life may bring their way.

Mommy Hates Cooking is a national cooking and lifestyle website that encourages families to take back the dinner table. Through her easy-to-prepare (yet looks like you spent all day in the kitchen) meals and her knack for breaking down meal planning, Kristy has become the busy-mom’s resource for the modern family.

The Nourished Life is all about approaching health and wellness from a place of balance. Getting healthy should not be another source of stress in your life! We tackle everything from metabolism to body image to emotional wellness to DIY beauty. If you’re ready to break up with stress and body hate, and embrace a healthier approach to, well, being healthy, then our community might be the perfect fit for you.

TakeThemAMeal.com is a free online tool designed to coordinate the delivery of meals to loved ones in times of illness, new birth, loss of a loved one, etc. Meals are a tangible, meaningful way to show support and our website simplifies the process of coordinating so your time and energy can be spent caring for loved ones.

TriedandTasty.com is a recipe website where fun, conversational writing is paired with top notch food photography. Join Yvonne as she warmly welcomes you into her kitchen and shows you how to wow your tastebuds!

Nourishing Joy is dedicated to real food and natural living. We’re on a mission to equip and inspire parents like you with the tools to make intentional, thoughtful decisions – that work for YOUR family – easy. Or at least easier.

Katie Kimball is on a mission to make real food and natural living possible for everyone. Kitchen Stewardship strives to present healthy living in bite-sized baby steps, challenging people to make positive changes in their kitchens without being overwhelmed, and providing tools to balance a family’s health, budget, time and the environment.

Intoxicated on Life is about raising strong families—body, mind, and soul. Rich and readable, Intoxicated On Life offers parents timely advice about how to have a healthy family in a world full of unhealthy choices, including books and articles about nutrition, natural remedies, wholesome parenting, and home education.

Brilliant Business Moms: Sarah Korhnak and Beth Anne Schwamberger are sisters, podcasters, and big dreamers! They interview Mamapreneurs each week who are growing a business while spending time with their families. They’re the authors of Time Management Mama, the creators of the Brilliant Business Planner, and your biggest cheerleaders when it comes to growing an online business.

The Nourishing Home provides family-friendly GF recipes, free weekly whole food meal plans, helpful cooking tips and techniques, and lots of encouragement to help you in your journey to live a more nourished life.

Keeper of the Home is a community of women in all seasons of life… newly married, young mama’s with babies, teens all the way up to young adulthood and beyond. We are passionate about being diligent and intentional “keepers of our home”. Enthusiastic about natural and healthy living, we are stewarding our health and the earth, as well as our homes, our times, and our families. In doing this we believe we Honor the Lord. We hope you will join us. Pull up a chair, a warm mug of something delicious, and share this journey with us.

Julie Brasington is the creator of Happy Home Fairy, a popular blog focusing on encouraging and equipping moms to choose joy on the parenting journey. She shares easy craft ideas, FREE printables, simple recipes, corny jokes, holiday fun, thoughts on raising her 2 boys, and honest, heartfelt messages to uplift the weary mama.

Hi Gwen! Thanks for doing this amazing giveaway. I’m having issues on the “bring a friend” option. I’ve shared it on FB but it still shows that I haven’t. Is there anything specific I should be doing? Thanks!

Hi Lisa!
The way Rafflecopter sets this up is similar to an affiliate link: you share it, and for every friend that clicks through, you get one more entry- qualifying for up to 10 additional entries. Does that make sense? So as friends click through, it will show added points.

Hi Lisa! I’ll update the giveaway with a note about how that part works. It’s a little confusing. Basically, Rafflecopter gives you a unique link to share, and the first 10 people who click through your link each give you an additional point. Make sense? So it won’t show up right away…only after your friends click through it.

Hi Laura,
My giveaway is done through the Rafflecopter widget at the bottom. It should open up different ways to get entry points. If your entries go through, you should see entry points reflected in the widget. If it’s not working on your device, try a computer maybe?

I’m talking with the folks at Rafflecopter. He says that things look normal from their end, and that “Generally these types of issues boil down to the entrant having extremely strict security software on their device”. You can get direct support from them at support@rafflecopter.com.

Boy this was fun! On an iPad it is difficult to open and reopen the widget and enter. Hopefully I did it right.
Winning something like this would be such a tremendous blessing and help! For help I am in need of dear Sister!
Thank you for all you have done and still do with your blog and other social media! I am encouraged and thankful!

I entered some of the links but others are not working… I shared on facebook and via email but it wont log the entries. I also visited your page on facebook, not sure what I am doing wrong.

I love the give away though and all your recipes and tips have helped me in my journey. I am still learning but your site has helped me soooo much I couldnt have made it without your help thank you!!! Merry Christmas

Hi Rochelle, I used Rafflecopter to run my giveaway, so you’ll enter via the Rafflecopter Widget just under the Enter Here banner at the bottom of the post. You sign in, and then Rafflecopter will show you the ways that you can get entries, and if you do it right, you’ll see the points for your entries. The Refer a Friend entries are added as friends click through.

Hi Karen,
I used Rafflecopter to run my giveaway, so you’ll enter via the Rafflecopter Widget just under the Enter Here banner at the bottom of the post. You sign in, and then Rafflecopter will show you the ways that you can get entries, you should see the points for your entries as you go. However, the Refer a Friend entries are added as friends click through.

Sherrill, I’m talking with the folks at Rafflecopter. He says that things look normal from their end, and that “Generally these types of issues boil down to the entrant having extremely strict security software on their device”. You can get direct support from them at support@rafflecopter.com.

Thanks for sharing your information, your experiences, your recipes, your time, your resources and then going just one step further and blessing someone with some amazing gifts!! Truly enjoy following your posts.

Hi Teresa,
I used Rafflecopter to run my giveaway, so you’ll enter via the Rafflecopter Widget just under the Enter Here banner at the bottom of the post. You sign in, and then Rafflecopter will show you the ways that you can get entries, you should see the points for your entries as you go. However, the Refer a Friend entries are added as friends click through. Hope that helps!

Hi Josephine,
I used Rafflecopter to run my giveaway, so you’ll enter via the Rafflecopter Widget just under the Enter Here banner at the bottom of the post. You sign in, and then Rafflecopter will show you the ways that you can get entries, you should see the points for your entries as you go. However, the Refer a Friend entries are added as friends click through.

If you’re not able to open the widget, try contacting support@rafflecopter.com. I spoke with a representative today, and he said most often it’s due to devices with very high security settings. Hope that helps!

Wait! I figured it out! hooray! this giveaway looks amazing, my mom, sister, grandma and I just started THM and we have been enjoying it, although it is taking some time to learn how it all works, and wrap my mind around everything! i’m sure some of the items in this giveaway list would help us incredibly!

Hello (from my phone which doesn’t have the freezing issue like my computer)! I also tried to enter several different ways. It shows that I visited different websites, but the entries weren’t processed. Thanks!!

The Rafflecopter entry form is right under the pink ENTER HERE banner. If you’re on a device, the Rafflecopter support team says that most often, tech issues are due to the device’s extremely high security settings. You can email support@rafflecopter.com for help. Some have had better luck getting the app to open on their desktop or laptop.

I tried as well to enter and don’t get connected to anywhere to actually put my information in. Would love the Trim Healthy Mama prize. I’ve been wanting to do this plan, but just can’t afford it right now.

If you’re on a device, the Rafflecopter support team says that most often, tech issues are due to the device’s extremely high security settings. You can email support@rafflecopter.com for help. Some have had better luck getting the app to open on their desktop or laptop.

I would love to win the Blendtec. I make all my 42 year old brain-damaged (Cerebral Palsy) daughter’s food and I am sure this would help the process. Plus I have been a Trim Healthy Mama for 2 years and love all their products.

If you’re on a device, the Rafflecopter support team says that most often, tech issues are due to the device’s extremely high security settings. You can email support@rafflecopter.com for help. Some have had better luck getting the app to open on their desktop or laptop.

Hi, Gwen! I’ve tried several times to share this on FB for a chance for 10 entries… it is on my page but still HERE it doesn’t show that I’ve gotten the number of entries for it. (I have deleted a few of my posts b/c I don’t want to look wacked out silly with 17 shares of this AMAZING giveaway!!! ) Oh, how I’d love that BlendTec!!!!

I have shared on Facebook, but rafflecopter isn’t reflecting my entry. I have also pinned the giveaway to my Giveaways board on Pinterest but have no way to share the url from my phone. I will try from my computer late. Thank you for the wonderful opportunity!

Hi! I am just one week into this healthy life style. The scale has gone down which amazes me because I feel very satisfied. I have the cookbook and plan book and am working on understanding them better. My wish list for mentioned products is growing.

What an awesome giveaway!! I would love to win this. After 29 years of teaching at a university, I have lost my job. My husband is a pastor in an urban church and there is just now much money to go around. This would be a real blessing to us.

Hi Lisa! There’s a little explanation just below the entry widget that explains the share with friends entry points. It’s a little confusing, but basically they give you a unique link and add points for the first 10 friends who use your link to enter.